Hello all! I was inspired by Eliot Coleman and decided to try winter gardening in my unheated greenhouse this year. We live in southern NH, zone 5. I am growing salad greens, mache, spinach, carrots and parsley. I tried claytonia as well but started too late.

Anyway, after about 18 inches of snow falling just outside the greenhouse over the past 2 days I decided that it would be just too cool to enjoy a fresh picked salad for lunch. I picked carrots (which are super sweet, Mr Coleman is absolutely right about their winter virtues) and greens. Well the salad greens look beautiful, but I was SHOCKED to find scads of healthy, thriving aphids on the greens! LOTS of them buggers. The greenhouse has certainly been at least in the 20s for the past several days. Either the aphids don't mind freezing temps, or the remay cover is a super efficient blanket. Has anyone else found live aphids on their winter greens? I've also had caterpillers (army worms?) eating my spinach and mache. I've been hand picking them as I find them. YUCK. I was hoping the freezing temps would take care of the bugs.

Is anyone else out there in New England growing winter produce? Is anyone else growing mache? I hate to say it, but despite looking beautiful it has this "rotten" tasting quality to it and just doesn't taste sweet or nutty at all. Is it my soil perhaps?